Do you ever just get fed up of surfing the net scoping out the competition? Have you ever allowed your focus to be derailed as a result of overwhelm and unwarranted comparisons whether in the name of research, due diligence, or plain old curiosity? I hear ya, me too. In all honesty, it got to a point where I had to stop looking at what other people were doing for fear that my God-given destiny would be overrun with someone else’s vision.
All around me was this person making her millions, and this other person doing the same, and the more I tried to mimic the actions of those individuals the further away I knew I was from what I believed God called me to do. Getting caught up in the trends instead of asking God how He wanted this to be done. Now don’t get me wrong, due diligence and counting the costs of business is an essential step in the vision development process, but when you allow it to be the be all and end all when you KNOW God has sown a seed in your heart is quite another story.
We need to be very careful not to allow that seed to die simply because we are focussed on the giants in the land. The giants of comparison can impede your progress like nothing else can (especially when we are the ones doing the comparing). Perhaps it’s the ‘I-need-more-education’ giant, or the ‘I-wish-I-could-speak-like-that’ giant, or the old ‘If-I-had-more-money’ giant that you’ve been looking at… which one is it for you?
Now I’m not a hater by nature, but I do recall a time in my life when other people’s seeming success was right up in my face and I just couldn’t handle not comparing myself to them. Sometimes trying to convince myself that God is no respecter of persons and that what He has done for them He can do for me. And sometimes the conversation was very different— crippling almost, as I kept finding myself on the wrong end of the comparison equation. It really began to affect me in an extremely negative way. It was difficult to see at first as I allowed myself to go down this slippery slope, until one day I realised the truth—I was no longer trusting God and enjoying the process. I started noticing that each time I compared myself to some guru in the industry I was actually despising the gifts and talents God gave me and me alone. I came to the understanding that it didn’t quite matter what the “experts” say is the best way to do what I do, but I was much better off doing what God said was the best way to do it. I gained so much freedom that day!
Now don’t get me wrong, I am all about fast-tracking by walking with a mentor and watching the trends to see where you can add value, but we must be careful not to pay so much attention to the mess that we completely miss our message. When God spoke to me about this, I felt He was asking me to ‘fast’ (take a break from) looking at the competition. By not seeing what all the gurus were doing allowed me the space I needed to develop my own message, my own style, and delivery method. Rather than following someone else’s plan, God was helping me develop the one He gave me.
There are still times when I get an idea and God will speak very clearly and ask me not Google it or do any research about until He has a chance to share it with me properly. It’s not until afterwards that I understood the reason behind that approach. What I noticed was that the minute I had an idea (even one I truly believed God let me in on), as I researched it online, I immediately began to look at the giants in the land. Even if what I had in essence was completely different I would find something that would eat at me as if I had no chance to move it forward.
So STOP looking at the giants in the land the Lord is giving to you. Yes, do your research. Yes, count the costs to better understand what you’re getting yourself into. And yes, take God at His word when it lines up with His Word. He is a ‘for real’ God. He knows what it takes to get your vision out there. He knows what you have… what He’s given you to share with the world. So don’t hold back fearfully watching the giants from your living room chair. Instead choose to participate in His process, set your face like flint… let go and TRUST! Trust that God is truly who He says He is. He is a good God and wants the best for you… so what are you waiting for? Make a decision to stop meditating on the competition and start looking towards completion—completion of the vision God has placed in your heart to accomplish. I wonder what each of us would be capable of if we truly lived life with no fear of man (or woman)… hmmm, I wonder.
Blessings,
T